NCERT Solutions for Chapter 6 I Want Something in a Cage Class 7 English An Alien Hand
The lesson "I Want Something in a Cage" is written by L E Greeve. According to the narrator, the man lost ten years in prison without freedom through the lesson "I Want Something in a Cage". He felt himself in place of the caged birds while he was looking at them in the shop. Five dollars was all he had, so he bought a pair of doves and let them fly freely.
Chapter Name | I Want Something in a Cage NCERT Solutions |
Class | CBSE Class 7 |
Textbook Name | An Alien Hand |
Related Readings |
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Comprehension Check I
Question 1: Write 'True 'or' False 'against each of following statements.
(i) Mr Purcell sold birds, cats, dogs and monkeys.
(ii) He was very concerned about the well-being of the birds and animals in his shop.
(iii) He was impressed by the customer who bought the two doves.
(iv) He was a successful shop owner, though insensitive and cold as a person.
Answer:
(i) True
(ii)False
(iii)False
(iv) True
Question 2. Why is Mr Purcell compared to an owl?
Answer:
A pair of large glasses gave Mr Purcell the appearance of an owl with wise and genial eyes.
Question 3: From the third paragraph pick out
(i) words associated with cries of birds,
(ii) words associated with noise,
(iii) words suggestive of confusion and fear.
Answer:
(i) Cheeps, whispered twitters
(ii) Rustling, squeals, cheeps, squeaks
(iii) Bewildered, frantic, frightened, blindly seeking
Question 4: "...Mr Purcell heard it no more than he would have heard the monotonous ticking of a familiar clock." (Read para beginning with "It was a rough day...")
(i) What does 'it' refer to?
(ii) Why does Mr Purcell not hear 'it' clearly?
Answer:
(i) When a customer entered, the bell over the door would jingle.
(ii) His pet shop was always filled with birds trilling, whining and meowing, so he could not clearly hear them.
Comprehension Check II
Question 1: Do you think the atmosphere of Mr Purcell's shop was cheerful or depressing? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer:
In Mr Purcell's shop, the caged birds and animals made the atmosphere depressing. The author infers a depressing environment from his descriptions such as moving in frantic circles, frightened, stupefied, blindly seeking everything, even though they kept the environment lively by making noises.
Question 2: Describe the stranger who came to the pet shop. What did he want?
Answer:
The stranger wanted something small and caged in the pet shop. The shoes he wore squeaked forward and his suit, though new, was cheap and poorly fitting. He wore close-cropped hair and had a shuttling gaze.
Question 3:
(A) The man insisted on buying the doves because he was fond of birds. Do you agree?
Answer:
I do not agree that the man liked birds. As soon as he entered the store, he would have asked for birds. It was unclear what he wanted. In a cage, he wanted something small, flying, but caged.
(B) How had he earned the five dollars he had?
Answer:
Though no specific information is provided in the passage, we can infer that the man had just been released from prison. In response, he told the pet shop owner that he had earned the five dollars through hard work during the past ten years. A cheap suit was provided to him, as well as five dollars and a warning not to be caught again.
Question 4.: Was the customer interested in the care and feeding of the doves he had bought? If not, why not?
Answer:
No, the customer freed the birds from the cage, which implies that he was not concerned about their care.
Exercises
Question 1: Why, in your opinion, did the man set the doves free?
Answer:
The man's words indicate he had spent ten years in prison and was well aware of the pain of being locked up and the importance of freedom. God designed creatures for flight, but their owners kept them in cages to keep them from flying. He sympathized with them.
Question 2: Why did it make Mr. Purcell feel "vaguely insulted"?
Answer:
Mr. Purcell felt vaguely insulted by the man who freed the doves he had purchased for five dollars from his shop. The man had only five dollars with him, and he spent them entirely on releasing the birds. Mr Purcell felt insulted since he had caged and sold the birds.